In the last few years, telecommunications devices such as cellular phones, landline phones and IP-based phones have become more and more capable, offering an increasing array of functions. Once limited to simple point-to-point voice communications, telecommunications devices have evolved into so-called “smart phones” that offer many different modes of telecommunication, such as voice, video, text messaging, instant messaging, email, and other modes of communication. Furthermore, modern smart phones have capabilities approaching those of more traditional desktop computers, including the ability to load and run third party applications. Applications are available for business use, as well as for personal use, education, and entertainment.
Many people view their telecommunications devices as critical to daily life: necessary for coordinating both business and personal activities. Among many families, cell phones, in particular, are becoming a primary means of communication, and more and more children have their own mobile devices. This allows parents to keep in touch with their children despite the hectic schedules of both parents and children.
The advanced capabilities of modern communications devices create a variety of educational opportunities, as well as opportunities for rich interactions between parents and children even when they are geographically separated. Unfortunately, these opportunities are accompanied by dangers such as the ability to access inappropriate materials and to communicate with virtually anyone in the world. Parents usually want to limit accessibility in order to protect their children from inappropriate content, activities, and communications.
Some telecommunications devices can indeed be configured to limit their communications capabilities. For example, a phone might be configured to accept telephone calls only from specified parties such as parents. Likewise, the phone might be configured to only allow certain outgoing calls. Access to content and activities can be similarly limited. However, these types of configuration choices are inflexible and mainly exclusionary. They do not allow the parent to participate in creating new experiences and learning opportunities for the child, and do nothing to facilitate or increase close interaction between parent and child.